Search Engine Optimization

Although SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is not our focus at Virtu Software, we have been doing SEO work since 1995, with great success. Virtu Software's family of sites has thousands of distinct visitors every day of the year, and we have never paid a penny for advertising.

What many people don't realize is this: while you can spend money on Pay-Per-Click or Pay-Per-Impression advertising, that advertising will never get you higher ranking in search results. But if you can get listed higher in the search results, that's free traffic you don't have to keep paying for month after month!

Search Engine Optimization - Watch Out For Crooks!

When talking to an SEO company, you should find out exactly what they intend to do, because the SEO profession is full of cheats and scoundrels who will use unethical means to fool you into thinking they've improved your rankings.

I've actually seen SEO companies that send out spam to thousands of people, containing an image from your site. This produces a huge spike in your site statistics, even though none of those "visitors" actually visited your site!

Others will charge you exhorbitant monthly fees - I've seen some that charge $200 per month, and they never tell you exactly what it is you're paying them for!

By the way, don't be fooled into thinking that your home page is the only page worth optimizing! Every page can be a gateway into your site!

Below you will find a description of the services we offer. Read this carefully so you can understand what we'll be doing to your site.

Search Engine Optimization - Understanding Your Site

Our Search Engine Optimization process begins with studying the content of your web page, trying to understand the focus of your site. As part of this process we may make recommendations about redesigning the way people navigate your site. If we make recommendations along those lines, we will let you know how much it will cost to have us make those changes. The client is free to reject any of these recommendations.

Search Engine Optimization - Understanding Your Visitors

Once we have a handle on what your site is all about, we use various "keyword tools" to analyze the related search terms and phrases people might use in search engines like Google, MSN, or Yahoo. This helps us to understand what kinds of words/phrases you need to include in your text

Search Engine Optimization - Modifying Your Page Content

In some cases, an alternate version of your text will be sent to you for your approval. The actual message and meaning of your page will not be changed, but some ways of phrasing things are better than others. The client is free to reject any recommended changes.

Search Engine Optimization - Modifying Your Title and Meta Tags

Finally, we carefully design page titles and meta tags to reflect the content of your page and the search habits of potential visitors.

Directory Submission

As an additional step, we can submit your site to a variety of free online directories; this may not have immediate effect, but in the long run, getting listed in directories improves your "link popularity", which gives another boost in traffic.